Teach-Primary-Issue-19.4

The writer is a supply teacher in England. VO I C E S I ’m ushered into the office, and a senior leader speaks in hushed tones: “They’re our most difficult class.” I’m not sure whether this is fair warning, an advance apology, or a plea that I don’t judge the whole school by this one group of children. Perhaps all three. Once I’m in the classroom, a member of support staff loudly points out the children I’m going to have the most trouble with – a lovely bit of public humiliation to start the day. Well, at least I know, and as it turns out, they aren’t wrong. I quickly discover that this isn’t the kind of class you can work with without an established relationship. I learn all their names as fast as possible. There are a few that I’m still rusty with by the end of the day, but they aren’t the ones I needed to know for behaviour management purposes. Some children are clearly testing my boundaries; I go out of my way to connect with them, attempting that ‘strict but kind’ approach that kids used to mention in their thankyou cards to me. I’m not sure it makes things better, but I think it probably means things get no worse. At several points during the day, I wonder about the wisdom of putting a supply teacher in front of a class like this. I observe how some members of school staff are able to elicit marginally better behaviour from them, but not always using strategies I’m comfortable with. I decide to fall in line with the school’s standard approaches. Perhaps consistency is better than conviction? There are times where all I’m doing is trying to establish some decorum. I’m reiterating the same expectations over and over again. I’m not settling for anything less than 100 per cent compliance with the simple things I’m asking them to do: sit in your seat, put the equipment down, face this way. Stuck record doesn’t begin to describe it. I console myself that these are the foundations that need to be built – they’re learning something, even if it’s not the curriculum content that was left for me to cover. We manage one cycle of ‘I do – we do – you do’ in maths, and then it’s lunchtime and I have 50 minutes to regroup, check through the planning and steady myself for another two hours and 25 minutes of the most difficult class I’ve ever had to teach. And, actually, the first hour of the afternoon goes pretty well. There’s a video and they watch it with rapt attention. There are turn-and-talk tasks that they engage with. Many are keen to join in with whole-class discussion. The children have good ideas and they want to share them. It feels like the morning’s labour of hasty relationship-building has paid off. Plus, one of the lads whose behaviour hadn’t exactly been compliant offers to do the slides and that keeps him in line, as does my agreement with him that the presenter in the video is quite annoying. I wish I could say the afternoon continues in the same vein, but it doesn’t. I console myself that I have gained some ground, and that progress isn’t always linear, but honestly, I feel like I’ve failed. Realistically, though, I know that the difficulties I’m experiencing are largely not to do with me at all: school leaders should carefully consider how they might cover such a class. It’s likely that someone who knows the children well is the best fit, and not a supply teacher. Although logistic- ally a supply teacher might be a simpler option, it may not be right for the children in their care, or for the teacher. Sometimes the school, perhaps even the leaders, need to take the hit themselves. I go home feeling like I never want to teach that class again, while simultaneously thinking that if I could just spend some more time with them, I could probably turn things around. If the call comes again for that class, I’ll probably say yes. I like a challenge. TP “I quickly discover that this isn’t the kind of class you can work with without an established relationship” Leaders, please think twice about throwing a supply teacher into the shark tank with your most difficult class – it doesn’t help either of us Our anonymous educator gets something off their chest www.teachwire.net | 19